'Europe's refugee crisis has exposed the vulnerabilities of its interventionist policy in West Asia. Turkey's ambitions in the region have become destructive, provoking as a corollary a sharp deterioration of its productive ties with Russia. The Kurdish issue has acquired a new dimension, with a gap opening up between the US and Turkish geopolitical interests regarding the aspirations of this ethnic group and Turkey's paranoia about Kurdish nationalism. On top of it all, the Islamic State is viewed as a threat to all countries, within and without the region, including those that supported its emergence in the first place for settling regional scores. Israel, seen traditionally as the root cause of conflict and instability in the region, is no longer at the centre of the debate, though its animus towards Iran remains a powerful factor in developments in the region.'

We have approved investment of $85.21 million in Phase 1 of the Chabahar port project, which would be insufficient for achieving our long-term strategic goals. Iran is ready for more Indian investments in its infrastructure, especially in railways, roads and refineries, but we have yet to make up our minds about the scale and speed of our commitment. Given India's agricultural needs, we would be keen on an India-Iran joint venture for fertilizer production in Chabahar using Iranian gas.

A high-level political and intelligence cooperation among Iran, India and Russia on Afghanistan is, therefore, needed. Defence contacts between India and Iran that had been curtailed because of sanctions also need revival.'

Who is destabilizing Pakistan? It is the jihadis and their suicide bombers. The same suicide bombers, who killed Benazir Bhutto, who killed children in APS, who killed students in Bacha Khan University, who attacked Marriott Hotel in Islamabad, who killed Ismaili Shias, who attacked the ISI headquarters, nuclear establishments, airbase and naval base and more recently who killed innocent people in Iqbal Park in Lahore even as the Joint Investigation Team was investigating the Pathankot attack. Most attacks in Pakistan and India have been by suicide jihadi teams. Is India and Iran producing these suicide bombers? They are incubating in various madrasas of Pakistan.

The internal threat levels in Pakistan have become so pernicious that the dispensation had to embark on a National Action Plan (NAP) to fight terror. Under the plan military courts have been set up by a constitutional amendment.

The Baluch – Brahui culture is common to Baluchistan of Pakistan and Baluchistan of Iran just as the Afghan – Pushto culture transcends the Durand Line separating Afghanistan and Pakistan. This is indeed vulnerability for Pakistan.

Four years later, Tawang found its own 'Patel' in Jairamdas Daulatram, the Governor of Assam. Daulatram ordered a young Naga officer to go and set up the Government of India's administration in Tawang area (then Kameng Frontier Agency). Only later did Daulatram mention the operation to Nehru; by then, the job was done.

Interestingly, for years the Chinese government did not react to the Khathing expedition. A Chinese study on the McMahon line admits: "Not being clear about the Indo-Tibetan border is clearly reflected in the map drawn by the troop that invaded Tibet." The study further explains:

It is only in 1954 that the Communist regime in Beijing discovered the old KMT maps claiming the entire NEFA as Chinese territory.